Rise Above
by laurzz
Summary: DannyLindsay. Post ep for 8x07. Rated T for language. "Be professional. Be professional. Be professional. Don't react, don't let it get to you, Lindsay, you're better than this."


**A/N: Well, I'm just going to start by saying Jo did herself no favours in that episode. I am not the happiest bunny in the world, so as a warning... if you're as big of fan as Jo as I am Lindsay, I don't mean any of this personally. I promise, it was just... me ranting really. Likewise with Stella. It's nothing personal... just a means of artistic expression, shall we say? Also, I managed to write this in an hour and 10 minutes, so I think it's saying something - usually I see 5am on Saturday mornings... I might get to bed a little earlier than usual! YAY! **

**On a slightly more personal level, I just want to extend my thank you to every one who offered their concern for me last week. I'm still reeling from what happened, but the support and kindness that you guys offered me was really appreciated and meant a lot, so thank you. Really, thank you. **

**I just want to thank those of you who reviewed - but also thanks to those who read too! A story isn't much good without an audience, so thank you**. rhymenocerous, dantana-balscofanxoxo, dannylindsayfan, Meggie, RandomTVFan30, MesserFamilyFan100, alexindigo, LindsayMesser, Julia, ILoveTheCubs, afrozenheart412, A-shiningstar , brendanakai, Daisy1966, Hope06, Gigglesforcsi and 18lzytwner.

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><p>"Be professional. Be professional. Be professional. Don't react; don't let it get to you, Lindsay, you're better than this."<p>

Shaking her head, Lindsay pulled up the document she'd just closed and settled into her favourite armchair. This was her last resort. She'd been pushed too far for the last time. It was one thing being snapped at over a misunderstanding, but it was another thing entirely to be questioned over her scientific and moral ability to perform the job that was expected of her. Who the hell did Jo think she was? She was no better than Lindsay. While she may have more experience under her belt, Jo was no different to Lindsay... except maybe a little less high strung and rude. That's what Jo had been; rude. She'd been so high on her horse that she hadn't even stopped momentarily to realise what it was that Lindsay was actually saying. She wasn't saying that it was Jo's fault; far from it in fact... she was trying to appreciate the burden that Jo carried on her shoulders because of the decisions she'd had to make.

Well... it was decided; she was going to be made a fool out of no more.

"What'cha doin' babe?"

"Updating my resume."

Laughing, Danny nodded as he shuffled into their living room, yawning as he did so. "Yeah, okay... seriously though, what'cha doin'?"

"My resume." She repeated as she turned their laptop so that he could see. "I'm not joking."

"Uh babe, why the hell are you updating your resume?"

"Because!" She huffed, turning her attention back to her screen as she noted down her professional accomplishments since she'd last added to her resume.

"Because isn't a reason babe."

"Why am I updating it?" she rhetorically asked him. "Why? I'll tell you why, because I am sick and tired of being made to feel like some naive little girl whom is clearly incapable of a job that I've been doing for the past decade. I'm going to fill in some applications for the Jersey lab tomorrow. I hear they're looking for new investigators."

"Babe... what the hell happened today?" Danny implored, sitting on the arm of the chair that Lindsay was snuggled up in. "Did something happen?"

"Yes, something happened." She spat once again, "Jo happened. That's what! I'm done, Danny. I'm finished. Sorry, but I'm not dealing with it anymore. As much as I respected Stella, I have to admit that when she left, I was glad of the reprieve... I didn't have anyone talking to me like I was an intern or something equally as ridiculous. Now Jo thinks she can waltz on in here and make me out to be this... ugh!" She grabbed a pillow from the nearby couch and screamed into the material. "Fucking, fucking, fucking! UGH!"

Biting his lip from his wife's string of expletives, Danny carefully took the laptop from her lap and placed it on the coffee table before bending down and picking his wife up into his arms. It silenced her string of curse words momentarily as he held her in the air; but she promptly returned to removing the pent up energy within her as language that would make sailors blush, spilled from her lips.

As he settled with her on his lap in the same armchair she'd just been curled up in, he sighed as he ran his fingers through her hair reassuringly as she put the pillow on her lap and punched it a few times. He'd quickly learnt over the course of their relationship, and marriage, how best to approach this type of situation. Although he could count on one, maybe two hands how many times he'd had a quiet word with Stella about her attitude and the requirement for her to just step down or else he'd involve Mac before she was too invested, he'd found that the real challenge waited for him at home.

As much as he adored his wife, he found that sometimes... sometimes she was too nice. She'd take the weight of the world on her shoulders without mumbling a word. She'd accept his verbal tirades and take them to heart; but would never let on. She'd solve their cases and take no recognition or appreciation for her efforts. She'd be the bad cop with their daughter, and would then watch her daughter run from her to Danny and snuggle into him; knowing that she'd get her own way.

He was a big contributing factor to it. He knew that. He shouldn't offer cuddles when Lucy was in trouble, and he knew that it was wrong of him to release his anger on her through words; and while he always apologised afterwards, he knew the damage was already done... Much like the situation that was playing out in front of him right now; she'd taken, taken, and taken the abuse from Jo, only to snap and crumble under the weight.

Things at work were stressful for the both of them, and with cases coming out of their ears – tensions and stress were obviously at a high; but as soon as rumours began filtering around the lab about the DC case coming back to haunt Jo, Danny knew that things were about to heat up. He just didn't realise they'd heat up so close to home.

His thought process had given Lindsay the time to calm down and she'd tossed the cushion haphazardly back to the couch and was currently snuggling into Danny's body, fitting perfectly just like she always did. He could hear her quickly paced breathing begin to slow and sighed as he pressed a kiss to her temple. "Alright, tell me what happened."

"She totally misinterpreted what I was trying to say, Danny." She began, completely overlooking the fact that Danny was still totally unaware of what had happened. "I wasn't implying that I thought she was responsible; and if she thought that, then it shows just how little she knows me."

"About the DC case?"

"Yeah." Lindsay nodded. "I just... I can't even - I'm so mad Danny, I'd rather not talk about it, okay?"

"Well, could you listen to me talk about it?" He asked tentatively. "I could tell you what I know?"

"Do you have to?" She asked him, her brown eyes glistening with what Danny could only assume was frustrated tears.

"Yep," he nodded. "Because you know that as soon as I do, you're going to see clarity and things won't seem as dramatic as they do right now. We might even be able to salvage your career at the New York crime lab; because let's face it, the commute would be a pain in the ass." He nudged her playfully, trying to assess her attitude and willingness to let him in. When he saw the ghost of a smile on her lips, he saw it as his opportunity. "The way I see it is, Jo's a bitch." He began, to which earned him a giggle from Lindsay. "Hear me out, she's a bitch Linds. Whatever she said, and whatever she did, was out of line. I know that, because the way you've been tonight has told me everythin' k?"

"I'm sorry," she mumbled against his chest. "I didn't mean to be a bitch to you tonight."

"I kind of guessed when you and Jo were shooting daggers at each other from across the lab, earlier." He admitted. "So I came home with the expectations of calmin' you down." He said softly. "Not to mention it's moody week anyway, so I know how that messes you up with your hormones."

Despite herself, and the situation, she giggled.

"So, your hormones, combined with stress and Jo being a bitch was a simple recipe for disaster, wasn't it?"

"Danny, you weren't there, I was trying to be n-"

"Nice," He finished. "Lindsay, believe it or not, I know a little bit about you, okay? I know hands down that you were anything but malicious in what you said. If Jo interpreted it differently, then that's Jo's problem; not yours."

"But Danny," Lindsay interrupted him, her eyes now filled with unshed tears. "She basically... she... ugh, it's not fair!" she implored. "I wouldn't ever do that! I wouldn't destroy evidence. I wouldn't!"

"And did she imply that you would?"

"Well, not exactly, but she made a dig about me being a forensic investigator and testifying under oath and a load of other crap. I only said that I understood that she still felt responsible; that's all. I didn't say she... ugh!"

Letting his fingers find their natural path through Lindsay's hair, Danny sighed as he decided to approach the topic in a slightly different way.

"Alright, do you remember when Stella bit your head off over that domestic violence case?" He began. "A Grace somethin'... she staged it completely and had Stella completely fooled."

Lindsay nodded. "Yeah."

"Okay, so you'd been suggesting a way of lookin' at somethin', hadn't you, and Stella went berserk, right?"

Lindsay nodded against her husband again. "Yeah."

"And in the end, you were right, weren't you?"

"I can't remember now." She shrugged.

"Okay, so you were right, she was wrong. Now usually, you being right is not an anomaly, nor is it an out of the blue occurrence; you're always finding breaks in the case. Why then, did she react in the way that she did?"

"Because of Frankie and how she was taking the case to heart. She didn't want to believe that Grace could stage something that was so real and raw to her. It was personal."

Danny licked his lips carefully. "Okay, so let's jump back to the present here then. Why were you taken off Libby's case?"

"So I could go and process Ali."

"Right," Danny nodded. "And when you had that conversation with Jo, what happened?"

"I said about her still feeling responsible for it, and she went berserk." Lindsay said with a small smile on her face, an understanding of where Danny was taking their conversation.

"Okay, now were you in the right?"

"I believe I was."

"And do you feel like Jo was in the wrong?"

"Personally?" Lindsay said softly, "yes."

"Okay, so why did Jo react the way that she did, despite that fact that once again, you were right and she was wrong."

"Because..." Lindsay trailed off as a smile tugged at her lips. "Because of the case in DC and she couldn't believe that history was beginning to repeat itself. She didn't want to believe that he could be freed again based on a technicality or a mistake. It was personal."

"Were either of those situations your fault?"

"No."

"Was it made out to be your fault?"

"Yes." She nodded softly.

"Why?"

"Because I'm an easy target." She huffed. "I never say anything to anyone."

"No," Danny shook his head. "Because you're sensitive, you care and you're compassionate. You care about your colleagues and their feelings. You take things personally and you take them to heart, through no fault of your own. They shouldn't speak to you like that, but they do... now it's up to you how you deal with those outbursts. They're outside influences, Montana. There's nothing you can do about them ranting at you... but when you're at home, here with me," he began as he wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her tight. "That's when you need to put it in a bubble and let it go, because there's nothing you can do."

"How can I do that though?"

"I can't help you there, baby." He said softly. "Only you know how you can deal with this. You know me; Mac can be in my face screamin' at me over my latest screw up and I walk outside and do it all over again; whereas if that was you, and he was up in your face screamin' about it, you'd react completely differently. You'd cry if I know you like I think I do." He squeezed her playfully. "And that's okay, because that's your way of dealing with things."

"Why do I do it though Danny?" she sniffled. "Why do I let people talk to me like that?"

"Because you're Lindsay Messer, and that's who you are. People don't realise it, but they take you for granted; I know I do. I'll hold my hands up right now and admit that sometimes I don't appreciate everything that you are, when I should. You're one in a million, Linds; even though it doesn't seem like it, Stella knew that, and Jo knows it... but the most important question is; do you know that?"

"Danny, you're be-"

"Lindsay," he cut her off, "Don't pass this off, k? You're one in a million. Do you know how many people would have given Jo a piece of their mind? Some people probably would have ripped her a new one right there and then, but what did you do instead? You used her anger and motivation to ensure that you did everything by the book in that examination. You left no part of Ali's body unprocessed, nor did you lose an ounce of professionalism while you did it. You should be proud of yourself, sweetheart. It takes a strong person to rise above being antagonised like that. Could you imagine if someone had got up in my face like that?"

"It would have been handbags at dawn," she winked playfully.

"Exactly, perhaps just a little less on the feminine side." He chuckled. "But seriously Linds, as much as you hate to hear this, you're the bigger person in this. You didn't rise to her incessant need to make things about her; you didn't rise to her words... you tried to rectify the situation and when she, I'm assuming, walked off?" he looked to Lindsay for confirmation, to which she nodded, "you didn't follow her and look for a slanging match, you turned around and did your job, which is the only thing that one can ask for. You've done nothing wrong here, okay sweetheart?"

"Why do I feel like I'm in the wrong then?"

"Because that's who you are." He said softly. "If I know you, you'll probably apologise to her tomorrow as well, because you won't want hard feelings, right?"

"I already have it planned in my head," she admitted with a blush to her cheeks. "It's not that I'm sorry, it's more of a case of I doubt that she's going to apologise to me."

"And you know what; that's on her shoulders – not yours. If you want to apologise baby, then do it. You know whatever you do I'll support. If Jo wants to act like that, then let her. It's not going to get her far in life."

"Second in command at the New York crime lab isn't too shabby, Danny."

"People will see through the facade soon enough though, Montana." He drawled, before finishing his sentence with a wink. "You'll see; all this is, is stress. She's stressed, you're... stressed?" he offered to which she replied with a nod. "Exactly, when stress levels are running high, emotions are usually running higher. Take it on the chin, don't take it to heart and by the end of the week, you'll have already forgotten about it."

"Promise?" she asked in a quiet voice.

"I'll go even further and pinky promise you." He said as he offered her his pinky before enclosing his hand around her's. "Now, do you feel better?"

"Lots." She whispered as she pressed a kiss to his stubbly cheek. "Have I told you lately that I love you?"

"I think you mentioned it." He returned the soft voice. "Now, I don't know about you, but I'm all for embracing this Lucy in bed at normal time and having an early night."

"An early night?" Lindsay implored with mock shock on her face. "What's one of those?"

"See, it's this thing where normal people go to bed earlier than they do usually and catch up on sleep. It's this glorious thing I heard about at the coffee shop earlier today."

"So what happens?" Lindsay asked as she stood from the armchair and tugged Danny up with their still joined hand. "People just go to sleep at eight o'clock with no repercussions?"

"Apparently." Danny shrugged. "Sometimes they even leave the dishes for the morning."

"Get out of here!" Lindsay implored as Danny wrapped his arms around her waist as they both stumbled to their bedroom, laughing and giggling as they moved.

Although she'd had a crappy day, once again her husband had made the stormy outlook not seem so intense. He'd calmed her down, made her see sense and put things into perspective. Yes Jo was out of line, completely wrong and quite frankly a bitch to her... but, by offering an Olive branch, she'd feel better that the air was clear and there were no hard feelings on her part. Like Danny had said, she was who she was and she couldn't change that.

As she glanced up towards her husband as he towered over her as they collapsed on their marital bed together, she decided that she didn't actually want to change who she was either; because despite all the imperfections she had, he still loved her. At the end of the day, all she could offer was her best and hope that was enough. If it wasn't, at least she knew that she'd given it everything... and no matter what, Danny would be at her side, defending her corner and restoring the balance in her world.

And that didn't seem too shabby.

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><p><strong>Well there we go, hope you enjoyed it. I'll tell you something, it's seriously theraputic writing these post-eps. It really helps to process the episode on a better level than my tweets. ;) <strong>

**Thanks for reading guys, as ever, I'd love to know what you thought. **


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